Viridian Rising
by lemony muffins
Summary: Or, Zombies Ate My Pokémon! A zombie outbreak devastates Viridian City, and leads to an unexpected romance... Who will live, and who will die? Rated T for violence!


**ONE**

**Exposure**

It was a hot dry afternoon in the height of July, the parched summer air tempered by a merciful breeze, and Ash, Brock and Misty were relaxing in the long grass that fringed Viridian Forest. All around them other young trainers played with their Pokémon or scouted around for new ones, and the picturesque scene came alive with playful shouts and the battling monsters' distinctive calls.

"Maybe it was aliens," said Brock, chewing idly on a long grass stem. He referred to the meteor that had blazed through the sky the previous night, much to the surprise and awe of the people of the Kanto and Johto regions. The three had watched the cosmic spectacle together from the roof of Pewter Gym, and had talked about little else since.

"Don't be silly," said Misty. "There's no such thing. It's just a big flying rock."

"Sure, that makes more sense," muttered Brock.

"Pikapi," said Pikachu quietly.

"My mom says that meteors are the ghosts of legendary Pokémon," said Ash.

Misty and Brock considered this for a moment, then burst out laughing. "Now _that's_ silly," said Brock.

"Pika_pi_," said Pikachu loudly, tugging on Ash's shoe.

"Cut it out, Pikachu," said Ash, his left arm across his eyes to block out the sun. "I'm trying to relax."

"Pika," said Pikachu insistently, scrambling to Ash's arm and pulling it away from his face. "_Pika_," he said again, and pointed towards the forest.

"I think he wants to explore the forest," grinned Brock.

"We'll go for a walk later, Pikachu. I just ate."

"Pi," grumbled Pikachu, slumping resignedly by his trainer's side and scowling at him.

Misty stretched her long body as she let out an unreserved yawn, watching a Butterfree flap lazily overhead. The three had enjoyed a sizeable lunch at Burger Face, and fast food always made her sleepy. The warm sun and the playful breeze contributed to the feeling, and she was on the verge of drifting off when a commotion from the tree line roused her.

A group of rookie trainers were gathered in a half circle at the forest's edge, buzzing with excitement and pointing at something the three couldn't see from their reclined positions. Brock headed over to the take a closer look. As Ash stood to follow Pikachu grabbed one of his shoes, pulling him back and giving a low warning growl.

"Pikachu, what's up with you?" asked Ash, irritated. He picked up Pikachu and placed the complaining Pokémon on his shoulder before following his friend.

Brock tapped a kid near the back of the growing crowd on the shoulder, and asked "What's going on?"

"A Nidoran just wandered out of the forest and stood there," said the kid. "It's not acting wild, but it doesn't seem to have a trainer."

"Let's get a closer look," said Misty, appearing behind Ash, and the three pushed their way to the front of the group. A Pokémon had indeed emerged from the forest, and was standing in the half-circle, apparently oblivious to the humans surrounding it.

"It is a Nidoran," confirmed Brock, stroking his chin. "And a female, too. They're rarely spotted around here."

"Is she okay?" said Ash. "She's shaking, and she looks kind of grey."

"Maybe she's sick," said Misty, her normally light-hearted tones coloured with concern.

A young boy stepped out from the crowd and approached the creature. "I saw it first," he exclaimed, "so it's my Pokémon!"

"That Nidoran could be ill," said Ash. "You should probably leave her alone."

"But I saw it," said the boy, ignoring Ash's advice and walking up to the Nidoran, who suddenly looked at the boy and let out a high-pitched rasping whine. "I've never had a Pokémon before." He stretched out his arms and scooped up the Nidoran. "You're not sick, are you buddy?"

Pikachu pawed at Ash's shoulder. "Pikapi," he said unhappily.

"Maybe she's hungry," suggested a tall blonde girl who Ash recognised from the Trainer House. Her Voltorb, bobbing near her head, crackled in agreement.

The boy reached into his pocket and took out a berry, which he held up to the Nidoran's mouth before popping it inside. The Pokémon chewed the food once, then spat it out in apparent disgust, giving another strange whine.

"Now that's odd," said Brock.

"Maybe she's not -" began the boy, but didn't get to finish his sentence, as the Nidoran chose that moment to sink its large front teeth deep into the boy's shoulder.

For a terrible moment time seemed to stand still. Silence fell on the stunned crowd, and the boy stared down at his attacker in shock. Then crimson blood began to spurt from his injury as he screamed in pain and terror, and the surrounding trainers scattered, wailing as they scrambled to get away. The three friends remained rooted to the spot in open-mouthed shock, not knowing what to do.

The Nidoran withdrew its teeth and reared its head back, its bloody maw stretched wide as if to attack again. Suddenly Pikachu leapt from Ash's shoulder towards the other Pokémon, unleashing a great bolt of electricity that shot past the boy's head and singed one eyebrow before crashing into the Nidoran's forehead, sending the beast flying as the boy sagged to the floor and toasting the remains of the berry.

"Be careful, Pikachu! Don't let her bite you!" cried Ash, finally regaining his power of speech. He ran with Brock and Misty to where the boy had collapsed, and knelt by him as Pikachu continued to rain bolts down on the Nidoran, which seemed to be unable to defend itself.

"Are you OK?" said Brock urgently. The boys head lolled and his eyes started to roll back in his skull. "Stay awake, kid! I think he's in shock," he said to the others. "Have we got any water?"

Ash fumbled in his backpack to retrieve his half-full water bottle, while Misty inspected the injury. The gash was three inches long and at least an inch deep, and blood still ran freely from the wet, ragged hole. "Brock," she said, "give me your shirt."

"Misty," protested Brock, who had suddenly blushed a deep red, "this is hardly the time or the--"

"For the bleeding, stupid!" cried Misty. "We need to stop the bleeding!"

"Oh, right," said Brock, laughing nervously as he quickly pulled his shirt off and threw it to her. "Sorry," he said, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment.

"Just keep talking to him," said Misty, tearing a strip from the shirt and starting to wrap it around the boy's shoulder and under his armpit, applying pressure to the wound as she created a bandage.

"That's enough, Pikachu!" cried Ash, as his yellow companion exhausted the last of its energy reserves on the dazed Nidoran, "come back! I'm going to capture her."

"Don't get too close," shouted Misty, finishing her bandage off with an improvised knot. Already the white fabric was stained crimson.

"He's still bleeding a lot," said Brock.

"That's not helpful!" snapped Misty. "Anyway, I did it just like they do in the movies."

Ash threw a Poké Ball, hitting the unresisting Nidoran square on its reddened snout. The red and white case popped open, and the Nidoran at turned at once into energy that was sucked into the Poke Ball. "I got her!" said Ash. "She didn't even try to escape."

"Pi-Pikachu," congratulated Pikachu weakly.

"Great going, Pikachu," said Ash, placing the ball into his backpack. "You take it easy now." He took out Pikachu's lightning bolt Poké Ball and his companion gratefully returned to it.

"We need to get the kid back to town," said Misty. "He's passed out."

"But there's no hospital in the City!" objected Brock.

"The Pokémon Centre will have to do," insisted Misty. "Nurse Joy can tell us what to do, and take care of that Nidoran as well. Can you lift him?"

"Sure," said Brock, gathering up the limp figure of the boy with some effort. "He's not so heavy."

"Let's go," said Ash, and the three struck out for Viridian City, Brock trying not to show the strain of the unconscious child's dead weight. As they neared the town, the boy stirred and murmured something under his breath.

"Is he awake?" asked Misty.

"I think so," replied Brock. He moved his ear closer to the boy's mouth. "What did you say, kid?"

"I saw it first..." murmured the kid, apparently delirious. "It's my Pokémon..."

"What's your name?" asked Misty gently.

"Name... My name is Billy..." whispered the boy.

"Well Billy," said Misty, "everything's going to be okay. We just need you to stay relaxed, okay?"

"...what happened to me?" asked Billy. "I don't feel good..."

By now the improvised bandage had turned completely red, and dark droplets of blood pattered regularly to the ground below. In Ash's backpack, the Nidoran's ball started to tremble, too gently for him to notice.

"I feel..." murmured Billy. "I feel..."

"Does Billy look odd to you?" whispered Ash to Brock. "Kind of... grey."

"...Hungry," finished Billy, then drifted off again as he was carried into town.

To be continued...

* * *

A/N - Hope you like it! Please review and I'll update soon...


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